By Eric Galatas, Public News Service – CO – Producer March 23, 2021 COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Plastic- and rubber-dominated playgrounds in Colorado Springs have added winding pathways with tall grasses, gardens, “mud kitchens” and other ways for kids to explore the outdoors. It’s part of a program to expand health and learning opportunities for children […]

There is a fourth lesson of the trail. It is one which John Muir taught me .  There are always some people in the mountains who are known as “hikers.” They rush over the trail at high speed and take great delight in being the first to reach camp and in covering the greatest number […]

There has been a lot of research on the importance of getting outdoors in a natural setting.  That research and the general feelings people have had on the subject for centuries has led to the creation of lots of parks and other opportunities to enjoy the outdoors.  We summed up those findings in our review […]

The Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance Program of the National Park Service and the Healthy Community Design Initiative of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention got together and produced a Parks, Trails and Health Workbook.  It is widely recognized that parks are critical to the health of communities and the people that live in them.  This […]

  I’ve discussed nature as a passport to heath in the past and mentioned recent work by Nature, Health, and Wellbeing Ireland and NatureRx.  Back in 2014,  the ParkRx Initiative formed and is now being co-led by representatives from the National Recreation and Park Association, the Institute at the Golden Gate, and the National Park […]

The National League of Cities has an initiative called Cities Connecting Children to Nature (CCCN).  The initiative is intended to “ensure that all children have the opportunity to play, learn and grow in nature, from city parks to the great outdoors.”  Partners include  National League of Cities Institute for Youth, Education & Families (IYEF), the Children & Nature […]

Lance Crosby, 63, from Billings, Montana, was killed by a grizzly bear on Elephant Back Mountain in Yellowstone National Park on August 6, 2015. Crosby was a seasonal employee at the Lake Medical Clinic at Lake Village in the park. He was last seen alive by co-workers on the morning of  August 6, at the clinic, […]

Frankly I’d rather hike 5 miles with a 50 pound backpack that jog one mile.  It’s not just that I find running rather boring, but it’s also that I easily get hurt.  Many of you like to run and also get injured and sore running.  This post is for you. The great folks that make […]

As a kid growing up, if there are trees around there is an innate need to climb them. But, kids are often thwarted . . . the first branch is too high, the trunk is too smooth or too broad to shinny up, upper body strength is lacking and so on. Still, as outdoor kids […]

Mardie Townsend, Claire Henderson-Wilson, Elyse Warner and Lauren Weiss, School of Health and Social Development, Deakin University, recently prepared Healthy Parks Healthy People: the State of the Evidence 2015 for Parks Victoria (Australia).  The 103 page document reviews the post-2008 scientific literature in relation to the health benefits of parks and natural spaces.  The attempt is […]